Creative Time makes first visit to Dallas

DALLAS (SMU) – Creative Time, the New York-based public arts organization that in October was named one of the two recipients of the inaugural Meadows Prize artists’ residency given by SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts, is making its first visit to Dallas this week under the auspices of the Prize.

Anne Pasternak, Creative Time president and artistic director, and Meredith Johnson, curator and producer of the consulting program, will spend four days, Jan. 27-30, meeting with artists, collectors, gallery owners, museum directors and curators, foundations, arts district representatives, and Meadows School faculty and students.

It is the first of four such trips planned by Creative Time over the next 18 months to help develop recommendations for a plan to grow and nurture the Dallas arts community. They plan to lead discussions, identify stakeholders, and help participants agree on goals and a plan of action. The aim is to bring together members of the arts community, urban planners, and school and city officials to lay the groundwork for a process that will help lead to a master plan for the arts in Dallas.

The Meadows Prize was established in fall 2009 as a way to bring artists with an international reputation to Dallas each year to produce an artistic legacy for the city. The first two winners – Creative Time and the Grammy-winning new music ensemble eighth blackbird – were announced in October by Meadows Dean José Bowen during opening ceremonies for the new AT&T Performing Arts Center.

The prize includes housing for a one-to-three-month residency in Dallas, transportation expenses, studio/office space and project costs, in addition to a $25,000 stipend. In return, recipients are expected to interact in a substantive way with Meadows students and collaborating arts organizations, and to leave a lasting legacy in Dallas, such as a work of art that remains in the community, a composition or piece of dramatic writing that would be performed locally, or a new way of teaching in a particular discipline.

Founded in New York in 1974, Creative Time has a history of commissioning, producing and presenting adventurous public artworks. During the 1980s and 90s it broadened the definitions of both art and public space, presenting projects on sites from billboards to landmark buildings to deli cups, and encouraging artists to address timely issues such as domestic violence, AIDS and racial inequality. Creative Time also promotes collaboration within the creative community, partnering with such organizations as Lincoln Center and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In 2007 Creative Time expanded to national and international projects, working with artists, sites and partners in cities such as New Orleans, Baltimore, Chicago and London. In 2008 Creative Time was hired by the city of Louisville to develop its first Public Art Master Plan.

The Meadows Prize is sponsored by the Meadows School and The Meadows Foundation, in partnership with the new AT&T Center for the Performing Arts and local Dallas arts organizations.

 Media Contact:

Victoria Winkelman
214-768-3785
vwinkelm@smu.edu

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